


Day 1: Condition

by Miphan



Series: Weiszmura Week 2019 [1]
Category: Edens Zero (Manga)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-01
Updated: 2019-03-01
Packaged: 2019-11-07 15:45:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17963432
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Miphan/pseuds/Miphan
Summary: "You know, I thought about it. And I've come to the conclusion that you wouldn't have let them kill me.”





	Day 1: Condition

"You know, I thought about it. And I've come to the conclusion that you wouldn't have let them kill me.”

As always – no matter the heaviness of the words or the situation – there’s close to no emotion on Homura's face. Her voice is steady too, leveled in a way that doesn't spark any hidden meanings, truths or lies. Weisz briefly wonders if she was always this way or her current self is a result of her training with a Shining Star. 

He ends up ignoring his own curiosity in favor of the events that brought them here. In retrospect, it had all been a matter of perspective. Shiki had wanted to get Pino out of the auction first, while he had deemed the creation of an escape route more significant. Shiki had dashed off as usual, leading them to be separated in an auction house full of criminals that would consider killing them as mercy. If they didn't deem them as suitable merchandise, that is. 

The fight had led to him fighting back-to-back with Homura, buying Rebecca and Happy the time to find Shiki and rescue Pino from another sentence of slavery. The ‘saving Homura' part had been executed on the spur of the moment. Their foes weren't skilled but they were many and the opening he made wouldn't last long. And Homura was still engaged in a battle that wouldn't end fast enough for her to escape. For a split second he considered leaving on his own – Homura was more than capable of making her own path – , but before he knew it he was aiming a million bullets towards the enemy. 

Surprise had flickered in Homura's eyes then, but Weisz had been too preoccupied to reach an exit to think about it. In the end, the exit found them when the building exploded and they were sent flying through a window and into the forest surrounding it. They had landed nicely enough with Ether Gear on their side and Weisz had wasted no time in contacting the ship. Witch had promised to be there as soon as she picked Shiki and the others up. The Demon King always came first. Not that Weisz could really blame her. Waiting for someone for years could be overwhelming. 

So, here they were now, having not moved an inch from the place they had landed. There is no point in aimlessly wandering around and attracting whatever animals are looking for a midnight snack. 

“What makes you think so?” He asks, leaning against a tree. The trunk is cold, but it's a welcome sensation to the scratches on his back. The injury isn't serious, but it will eventually give him a hard time if he doesn't apply medication. Thankfully, Edens Zero is always fully stocked. 

Above them, a flock of birds takes flight, causing a rain of leaves to fall over them. A few get stuck in Homura's hair and he has the urge to get up and help remove them. Instead, he watches her fingers as they slowly brush through dark strands, removing and brushing at the same time. 

Okay. There might have been a bit of caring in that spur of the moment after all. 

“The condition.” Homura explains, brushing the last leaf off her head. “I still own you the fulfillment of our promise.”

Ah, the condition. Weisz can't say that he had forgotten about that, but it still hurts a little that she sees it as the reason of aiding her in battle. It's strange. When he was in Norma, people misunderstanding his intentions didn't bother him. But now the thought of Homura or any of the others doing so deeply unsettles him. 

“I didn't do it for that.” He looks up at the sky, hoping to catch a glimpse of Edens Zero, but there's no such luck. He is stuck here in a conversation that makes him feel more uncomfortable by the minute. 

“Then, why?” The question isn't unexpected. Homura is looking at him critically over her patterned sleeve, like she is observing something entirely new. Well, she isn't entirely wrong. Not when Weisz is prone to communicating with half truths and blatant disregards. 

“Because you are...” – the best thing on this quest – “my friend.”

A moment of silence passes between them and then Homura laughs, trying and failing to stifle her chuckles behind her sleeve. Weisz drops his head in his hands, very aware of the blush on his face and very glad for the darkness around them. 

Now, it would be the worst moment for the ship to arrive. Naturally, that's the moment that it does. The lights of Edens Zero fall on them and the trees shake as the spaceship approaches their location. Over the sound of the wind, Shiki's voice can be heard, greeting them excitedly. Weisz can imagine him leaning over the open door with Rebecca screaming about safety measures that don't go unheard but ignored. 

All thoughts over that matter vanish when Homura's shoes enter his line of vision. Instinctively, he looks up, startled at their newfound proximity. Homura leans down slowly, giving him all the time in the world to pull away, and takes a leaf he hadn't realised was there off his hair. His breath hitches as her fingers lightly brush his cheek when withdrawing. 

She straightens, twirling the leaf between two fingers as she looks down at him. “I'm your friend, too.” She says with the tiniest smile on her face. 

It's small, like the sun peeking through the mountains, slowly ascending to the sky. Like sun rays escaping herds of clouds, giving the world only a glimpse of their true potential. It's a warmth that lingers on the eyes, on the skin, whispering tales of what ifs and future opportunities. A summer touches the winter he has closed himself in and the feeling that is born, acknowledged, intensified, is both thrilling and terrifying. 

Weisz coughs and nods, not trusting his voice to not betray him now, and brushes nonexistent dirt off his clothes as he stands. They are even closer now. It would be so easy to touch, to hold, to kiss. It wouldn't be right. Not with promises and conditions standing between them. 

“I'll tell you about the condition later.” he says, curling his lips in the usual smug grin. “It's nothing too perverted.” He adds as an afterthought. 

Homura looks like she is balancing between curiosity and the desire to slash him with her Ether Gear. She doesn't move away though, not even when Shiki lands next to them, bubbling with excitement about how Pino was saved and where Witch suggests they go next. Not even when he holds her close as Shiki uses his gravity powers to return them safely to the ship. 

He counts that as a win. 

Only when Edens Zero has fallen into the arms of Morpheus, after everyone has had their fill of food and drink and retreated to their rooms, does he realise the loss he has actually suffered. 

The urge to punch something is strong, coming from a time where doing so was the only acceptable solution to a problem. But it isn't now. Not here. 

In the beginning, he didn't want to get attached. He didn't want to be friends with anyone. But he did and he knows that he won't be able to betray them. But how can he be certain that they won't? That she won't? 

Homura is shrouded in mystery, keeping the details of her life close to her chest. Weisz knows a liar when he sees one. He has fabricated more complex stories than her own, giving only a speck of the truth as the base of a skyscraper of lies. He wonders how much of her story is true. 

He has many questions that want an answer, but in the end he settles for a demand. 

The hallway is dark, illuminated only by starlight. He knocks on Homura's room and she opens it rather quickly, as if she had been waiting for him. They look at each other, a common understanding settling between them. 

Weisz knows that his posture isn't welcoming, body stiff, arms crossed and expression made of ice and stone. He does nothing to pacify it. 

“Don't betray me.”

Homura smiles, small, timid, like the sun plunging the day into darkness.

“Condition accepted.”


End file.
